BISMARCK, N.D. For some people, it is a hard lesson to learn: if
you keep withdrawing money from the bank with no thought to the account
balance, eventually you will overdraw.

It is the same way with
groundwater.

March 13 through 19 has been
designated National Groundwater Awareness Week. In North Dakota,
protecting groundwater is one of the primary functions of the North Dakota
Department of Healths Division of Water Quality. Groundwater is found between
soil particles and cracks in rocks underground, in formations known as
aquifers.

An aquifer can be compared
to a bank account, and groundwater occurring in an aquifer is analogous to the
money in the account, according to GroundWater Depletion Across the Nation,
a 2003 fact sheet by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The paper,
authored by J.R. Bartolino and W.L. Cunningham, notes that the volume of groundwater
in storage is decreasing in many parts of the United States due to
increases in pumping.

Some of the negative
consequences of groundwater depletion include higher well pumping costs,
deterioration of water quality, reduction of water in streams and lakes, or
even land subsidence (sinking).

Because it is an integral
part of the earths hydrologic cycle, groundwater depletion can have a ripple
effect. The hydrologic cycle begins when the process of evaporation releases
water vapor into the atmosphere. The vapor condenses as it forms into clouds.
This water returns to the ground through precipitation rain. Water runoff
soaks into the soil, penetrating deep into the ground until it becomes groundwater,
which is found in aquifers below the surface. Groundwater flows through
the ground until it discharges into a lake or stream. From there, the cycle
begins again.

USGS estimates that 140
million Americans (roughly half the population) in all 50 states depend
directly on groundwater for daily needs. Groundwater accounts for 40 percent
of the nations public water supply and a significant portion of the water used
for irrigation.

Government agencies such as
the North Dakota Department of Health and the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) and national organizations such as the Groundwater Protection
Council (GWPC) are working together to protect and conserve this valuable
natural resource. For these agencies, and for ordinary citizens, monitoring
groundwater makes as much sense as balancing your checkbook.